1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to portable vacuum cleaners, more particularly to, a vacuum cleaner capable of operating with both air and liquid.
2. Description of Related Art
Currently, there exists portable vacuum cleaners which pick up or vacuum solid or liquid material. These portable vacuum cleaners are frequently referred to as "wet-dry" vacuum cleaners. Conventionally, the power source of such vacuum cleaners is charged by a charging unit. The vacuum cleaner is placed on the charging unit which rests on a generally horizontal or flat support surface. The charging unit includes a pair of charging contacts to engage a corresponding pair of contacts on the vacuum cleaner to allow electrical power to flow from the charging unit to the power source of the vacuum cleaner.
One disadvantage of the above charging unit is that when the charging unit is not mounted, the operator has to use both hands to remove the vacuum cleaner from the charging unit without the charging unit being moved or tipped. This is undesirable and limits the flexibility of the operator having a hand free for another task.
Another disadvantage of the above charging unit is that when the vacuum cleaner is removed and the charging unit is not secured to a mounting or support surface, the charging unit may move and scratch or mar the mounting or support surface.
It is, therefore, one object of the present invention to provide one hand removal of the vacuum cleaner from the charging unit.
It is another object of the present invention to keep the charging unit stationary while removing the vacuum cleaner to prevent scratching or marring of the mounting surface, even when the charging unit is not anchored to the mounting surface.